1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to guards for preventing fingers from being crushed in door gaps.
2. Prior Art
When a door is opened, a gap is created between the hinged edge of the door and the door jamb. When the door is closed, any soft object that is placed in the gap would be crushed by the powerful leverage of the door. The force produced at the door gap is many timers greater than at the outer edge of the door. Fingers are thus sometime seriously injured in door gaps. Young children are particularly susceptible because they explore their environments by touch. Adults sometimes unknowingly close doors on children""s fingers when the children are hidden behind the doors.
Many door gap guards are disclosed among the prior art, but they all suffer from one or more drawbacks. A guard disclosed in U.S. Pat. 5,778,601 to Wu is comprised of a rigid curved panel with one edge hinged to a doorjamb, and another edge slidably connected to a rail attached on a door. Installation is relatively cumbersome because fasteners are required along both sides of the guard. Any misalignment between the panel and the rail can cause the guard to bind when the door is pivoted. In another embodiment, the panel has a free edge that is biased against the door by a spring, which adds an additional part. In both embodiments, the hinges must be made by expensive injection molding.
A guard disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,765,311 to Kapler is comprised of a L-shaped panel with one end hinged to a doorjamb, and another end biased against a door by springs. The separate hinges and springs require relatively labor intensive assembly and installation. A guard disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,344,253 to Stiles is comprised of a stationary U-shaped member attached to a door jamb and positioned across the door gap. The stationary U-shaped member does not follow the door, so that the gap is still exposed when the door is fully opened.
A guard disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,384,996 to Gilchrist et al. is comprised of a flexible sheet with one edge attached to a doorjamb, and another edge biased against the door. Other guards disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,261,140 to McLean, U.S. Pat. No. 613,592 to Nagley, and U.S. Pat. No. 474,633 to Glazier are each comprised of a pair of bars respectively attached to the doorjamb and the door, and a flexible sheet connected between the bars. In each of these guards, the sheet is very wide and flexible. It will deform and collapse into the door gap when it is pushed upon by a finger, so that the finger can still get into the door gap and get hurt.
Accordingly, the objectives of the present door gap finger guard are:
to cover the door gap and thus prevent fingers or other objects from getting in;
to follow door movements and cover the gap at all times;
to not deform or collapse when pushed upon to prevent fingers from getting into the door gap;
to blend in with the surrounding architecture;
to be very simple to manufacture; and
to be very simple to install.
Further objectives of the present invention will become apparent from a consideration of the drawings and ensuing description.
The present door gap finger guard is comprised of an elongated rigid fixed plate connected to an elongated rigid movable plate by a narrow springy strip. The fixed plate, springy strip, and movable plate are coplanar when relaxed. The fixed plate is adapted to be attached to an interior surface of a doorjamb, and the movable plate is adapted to be biased against a door hinged to the doorjamb. Both plates are transparent for blending in with the surrounding architecture. The movable plate is biased against the door regardless of the door""s position to cover the door gap at all times. The springy strip is significantly narrower than either the movable plate or the fixed plate, so that most of the guard is of a rigid material that cannot be collapsed when pushed upon for preventing fingers from getting into the door gap.